Heterogeneous catalysts are typically manufactured by pelleting, extruding or granulating a powdered catalytic metal compound followed by a calcination, and/or optionally a reduction stage. Alternatively, catalyst supports formed by pelleting or extruding catalytically inert materials may be impregnated with solutions of catalyst compounds and dried prior to the calcination and/or reduction stages. The pelleting, extrusion and granulating methods while effective, offer limited variability in catalyst geometry and physical properties.
Additive layer manufacturing (ALM) is a technique whereby 2-dimensional layers of powdered materials are sequentially laid down and fused or bound together to form 3-dimensional solid objects. The technique has been developed for the fabrication of metal and ceramic components for use in aerospace and medical applications.